en. It came nearer. They could see the
stars and stripes flying from her mast. It was an American steamer
sent to find Doctor Kane.

Doctor Kane and his men were full of joy. They pushed their little
boat into the water once more. This little boat was called the
"Faith." It had carried Kane and his men hundreds of miles in
icy seas.

Once more the men took their oars, and rowed. This time they rowed
with all their might. They held up the little flag that they had
carried farther north than anybody had ever been before. They rowed
straight to the steamer.

In the bow of the boat was a little man with a tattered red shirt. He
could see that the captain of the boat was looking at him through a
spy-glass.

The captain shouted to the little man, "Is that Doctor Kane?"

The little man in the red shirt shouted back, "Yes!"

Doctor Kane and his men had been gone more than two years. People had
begun to think that they had all died. This steamer had been sent to
find out what had become of them. When the men on the steamer heard
that this little man in the red shirt was Doctor Kane himself, they
sent up cheer after cheer. In a few minutes more, Doctor Kane and
his men were on the steamer. They were now safe among friends. They
were sailing away toward their homes.

LONGFELLOW AS A BOY.

[Illustration: Longfellow and the Bird]

Long-fel-low was a noble boy. He always wanted to do right. He could
not bear to see one person do any wrong to another.

He was very tender-hearted. One day he took a gun and went shooting.
He killed a robin. Then he felt sorry for the robin He came home with
tears in his eyes. He was so grieved, that he never went
shooting again.

He liked to read Irving's "Sketch Book." Its strange stories about
Sleepy Hollow and Rip Van Win-kle pleased his fancy.

When he was thirteen he wrote a poem. It was about Love-well's fight
with the Indians. He sent his verses to a news-paper. He wondered if
the ed-i-tor would print them. He could not think of anything else. He
walked up and down in front of the printing office. He thought that
his poem might be in the printer's hands.

When the paper came out, there was his poem. It was signed "Henry."
Long-fel-low read it. He thought it a good poem.

But a judge who did not know whose poem it was talked about it that
evening. He said to young Long-fel-low, "Did you see that poem in the
paper? It was stiff. And all taken from other poets, too."